King Softball Third in Conference Preseason Poll

Jan 29, 2013

Head Coach Jenn Testa and the KU Lady Tornado softball team have been selected to finish third in the 2013 Conference Carolinas Preseason Coaches' Poll.

HIGH POINT, N.C. – The defending Conference Carolinas Tournament Champion Lady Tornado softball team will have to once again prove they are the top team in the league. King University was selected to finish third in the recent Conference Carolinas Preseason Coaches' Poll after an unexpected tournament run that declared them champions.

King became Conference Carolinas' Cinderella story last season after sweeping through the conference tournament last season to win the tournament championship as a first-year member and No. 6 seed. Prospects are positive for the Lady Tornado as they return many of its contributing members in 2013 including star pitcher Hannah Light (Coeburn, Va.) who was second in overall wins (19) and earned run average (1.53).

All-Conference selections sophomore shortstop Christina Melcher and junior catcher/outfielder Fallon Thomas combined for nine home runs and 71 runs batted in last season and will shore up the middle of the Lady Tornado lineup once again. King loses only three starters from last season and adds much depth in its incoming freshman class. Hannah Smith (C/INF) and Amber Walker (INF) will supply an element of power from the right side of the plate while Morgan Lowe and Morgan White will compete to compliment Light in the circle. Freshman Octavia Lewis-Rand will add to an array of King speedsters Aubree Hutt and Stephanie Rodriguez in the outfield.

King was one of two teams to have the most first-place votes in this year's poll (4), sharing the lead with Mount Olive College. They accumulated 84 points, just one point shy of the Trojans for second place.

The North Greenville Crusaders were selected as the preseason favorite, earning 89 points in the poll despite only receiving two of the possible 11 first-place votes. NGU returns twelve players from a team that placed second in the leagues post-season tournament, including junior Rachel Glazebrook who was the team's only All-Conference selection in 2012.